Houseparty for Mac

Quick overview

HouseParty is a live video-chatting app built for casual hangouts. It lets small groups jump into face-to-face conversations, toss in multiplayer mini-games, and keep several group sessions open at once so socializing from home feels natural and spontaneous.

Notable features

• Built-in party games such as Quickdraw, Trivia, and Heads Up that support up to eight players.
• Ability to have multiple active group calls simultaneously.
• Import friends from other social networks like Facebook and Snapchat to find contacts quickly.
• A visual indicator (wave emoji) to let someone know you’re available without placing a formal call.
• Option to lock a room so only invited participants can join.
• Split-screen layout during group chats so everyone can be seen at once.
• Maximum of eight people per video room.

How it works

When you open the app, you’ll immediately see which friends are online. Instead of dialing, you can tap a waving-hand icon next to a contact to signal you’re up for a chat — they can choose to join you. Rooms are organized as group video “parties,” and joining or leaving is simple. If you want to keep a session private, lock the room; this blocks anyone else from entering unless they’re invited.

Games and shared activities

HouseParty emphasizes social play alongside conversation. Several casual games are built into the experience so it feels more like hanging out in person:

• Trivia challenges and quick quiz rounds that test everyone’s knowledge.
• Drawing-based rounds (Quickdraw) where players guess sketches.
• Fast-paced guessing games like Heads Up for group play.

All game modes are optimized for small groups and support the same participant limit as video calls.

Limitations and practical concerns

• Connection stability: video calls can drop or degrade if participants have unreliable internet.
• Overlap: having multiple active parties can be confusing to manage for some users.
• Privacy: while rooms can be locked, anyone with an invite can join, so be mindful of who you add.
• Device and network performance may affect video quality when the room is full.

Suggested alternative

Microsoft Teams (free) — a solid option if you need a more stable, feature-rich platform for larger or more formal group calls. It offers reliable calling, stronger meeting controls, and better handling of varying network conditions while still providing free video and chat capabilities.